Shower enclosure



5. J. BRUNO SHOWER ENCLOSURE Filed Aug. 23, 1957 Nov. 10, 1959 Ill" I I 16 g INVENTOR Salnratore J. Bruno wm 72 234%; 7; ATTOZQNEYS United States Patent SHOWER ENCLOSURE Salvatore J. Bruno, Roslyn Heights, N.Y.' .Application August 23, 1957, Serial No. 679,838

2 Claims. (Cl. 4119) This invention relates generally to shower enclosures, and more particularly is directed to an improved track construction for sliding doors in either stall or compartment shower enclosures or bathtub shower enclosures.

Shower enclosures have been provided with a pair of slidably mounted glass paneled doors having support'rollouter longitudinal rim or edge of a bathtub was the threshold or sill of a stall or compartment shower. In the existing guide tracks, the door supporting rollers ride either on a flat, horizontal bottom wall of the track or on rails extending upwardly from such a bottom wall and, when openings are provided in a side of the track for the drainage from the latter of water accumulating therein, such drainage is only imperfectly realized by reason of the horizontal disposition of the bottom wall where puddles of water will remain.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an inexpensive guide track construction for shower enclosures of the described character, and wherein provision is made for completely draining from the track any water that may enter the latter during use, thereby to avoid the corrosion and unsanitary conditions that result from the failure to drain all of the water accumulateasily and relatively inexpensively extruded, thereby to .facilitate the construction and assembly of shower enclosures.

In accordance with an aspect of the invention, a guide track includes side walls that preferably flare laterally away from each other at their lower portions and that are connected by a lateral bottom wall which in a preferredform slopes downwardly from the outer side wall to the inner side wall. The vertical walls preferably have an undulated curve wall for facilitating manufacture and other purposes. Flangesextend laterally toward each other from the opposite side walls and, at their free edges, are turned upwardly to define rails along which the door supporting rollers may run, such flanges being spaced upwardly from the sloping bottom wall so that water entering the track may accumulate below the rail flanges which thereby hold the rollers clear of any collected water. Further, the inner side wall has spaced apart openingstherethrough immediately above the adjacent relatively low side of the sloping bottom wall so that any water accumulating on the latter may be completely drained from the track. The side walls may be parallel geach other or extending generally in parallel relationp.

The above, and other, objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent in the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawing fonning a part hereof, and wherein: V

Fig. l is an elevational view of a bathtub shower eners riding on a guide track that is installed either on the closure including a guide track construction embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken along the line 2-2 of Fig. l; and

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary elevational view of theguide track of Fig. 2 as viewed from the inner side thereof.

Referring to the drawing in detail, and initially to Fig. 1 thereof, where the present invention'is shown applied to a shower enclosure for a bathtub shower, it will be seen that the shower enclosure includes a pair of glass paneled doors 10 and 11 which are slidably mounted and adapted to serve as an openable closure or shield for the bathtub shower. In this type of shower, the bathtub. 12 is permanently enclosed along one longitudinal side and at both of the opposite ends by vertically extending walls 13, 14 and 15. Although the three walls 13, 14 and 15 are shown as tiled, structural walls with the bathtub 12 fitting into the alcove formed thereby, it is to be understood that, in those installations having the bathtub installed in a corner, one or the otherof the end walls.14 and 15 may be formed by a fixed, glass paneled partition as a part ofthe shower enclosure. In either case, the tub 12 serves as a receptacle for the Waste shower Water andthe upstanding walls 13', 14 and 15 define a compartment or enclosure that is open at the outer longitudinal side of the tub.

This open side of the shower compartmentis adapted to be closed by the doors 10 and 11 which, for this purpose,. are guided, at their upper and lower edges, by guide tracks 16 and 17, respectively. The lower guide track 17, which will hereinafter be described in detail, is mounted on, and extends along, the outer longitudinal edge or rim of the tub 12, while the upper guide track 16 extends parallel to the lower track and is spaced vertically from the latter by end frame members 18 and 19 which are suitably secured to the walls 14 and 15.

- Each of the doors 10 and 11 is provided with a rectangular frame 20, of extruded metal or the like, within which is fitted a panel 21 of glass or any other suitable, preferably transparent or translucent material. The doors are each of a width slightly exceeding one half the width of the opening framed by the tracks 16 and 17 and the members 18 and 19 so that they can be extendedacross the framed opening and overlap slightly at the center.

The doors 10 and 11 move in parallel vertical planes that are offset relative to each other and defined by the guide tracks 16 and 17. As seen in Fig. 2, the upper guide track 16 has a laterally extending top wall 22, undulated side walls 23 and 24 depending from the opposite longitudinal edges of the top wall, and a central wall or partition 25 also depending from the top wall and spaced equally from the side walls so that two downwardly opening channels or grooves 26 and 27 are defined between the depending walls to receive the upper edge portions of the doors 19 and 11, respectively. If desired, and particularly in. those installations where the upper guide track 16 is mounted against the ceiling or other permanent structure of the bathroom, the upper track 16 may further include outwardly flaring mounting wings 28 and 29 extending upwardly from the opposite edges of top wall 22 and adapted to abut, at their edges, against the ceiling to define a space 30 between the wings that can receive caulking or any other watertight sealing compound.

Preferably, the doors 10 and 11 have upper rollers 31 and 32, respectively, which may be of nylon and loosely engage in the related channels 26 and 27 of the upper track, such rollers being rotatable about vertical axes. The upper rollers, as shown in Fig. 2, have diameters greater than the thickness of the door frames 29 so that the latter are held out of frictional contact with the surfaces of the depending walls 23, 24 and 25 and resistance to sliding of the doors is thereby minimized.

The upper guide may have any desired arrangement.

The bottom track 17 embodying the present invention has a profile or cross-sectional configuration that best seen in Fig. 2and includes spaceda'parf, parallel toward each other from the internal surfaces 'of'side walls 33 and 34, respectively, and are spaced upwardly from the bottom wall 37. The flanges 38 and '39 have widths that are substantially less than one-half the distance between theside walls, and the spaced free edges of the flanges are turned upwardlyto define rails, as at 40 and 41. The doors and 11 have support rollers 42 and 43 rotatably mounted in the lower portions of their respective frames 20 and projecting downwardly from the latter to ride on the rails 40 and 41, respectively, thereby to facilitate the sliding movement of the doors 10 and 11. The rollers 42 and 43 may also be of nylon to reduce the noise of operation and to avoid the necessity of providing a lubricant.

As seen in Fig. 2, the 'flan'ge 39 extending from the inner side Wall 34 of the guide track is preferably also sloped or inclined downwardly toward the side wall 34 so that any water entering the upwardly opening space defined between rail 41 and the upper portion of inner sidewall 34 will be carried by the inclined flange 39 toward the related side wall and drain openings or slots 45 are provided in the flange 39 immediately adjacent the inner side wall 34 to ensure the complete drainage from the flange 39 of any water that may collect on the latter. The flange 38 also has openings or slots 44 therein to permit drainage therethrough of any water that may collect on that flange. However, since the frame of door 10 extends inwardly beyond the rail 40 the possibility of water entering the space between rail 40' and the outer side wall 33 generally is remote, and theflange 38 need not necessarily be inclined, as is the flange 39, to ensure rapid drainage of the accumulated water. f It is to be understood that the flanges and the drain openings therein can be arranged as desired. i

The guide track 17 embodying this invention further has slots or apertures 46 (Figs. 2 and 3) in the inner side wall 34 at longitudinally spaced apart locations and disposed so that the lower edges of the slots preferably are flush with the upper surface of the inclined bottom wall 37. Thus, the water falling between the rails 40 and 41, as well as the water draining through the openings 44 and 45 of the flanges 38 and 39, will be carried by the inclined bottom wall 37 toward the innerside of the guide track and will there drain from the latter through the slots 46. Since the bottom wall 37 is inclined, the complete drainage of any water accumulating within the guide track is assured. Further, the raising of the rails 40 and 41 from the bottom wall 37 avoids the immersion of the rollers 42 and 43 in accumulated water even during use of the shower when considerable quantities of water may enter between the rails 40 and 41 and between the rail 41 and inner side wall 34 along that portion of the track occupied by the outer door 10.

It is to be understood that the entire lower track 17 is an integral or one-piece element and may be formed of suitably extruded aluminum.

In mounting the lower t aqk 17 on the outer longitu- V 4 dinal edge of a bathtub 12, the rim of the tube may extend between the wings 35 and 36, as shown in Fig. 2, with the remainder of the'space under the bottom wall 37 being filled by a suitable caulking, or other watertight, compound. Where the lower track 17 is to be mounted on a tub having a wide, flat rim, or on the sill of a stall or compartment shower, the lower edges of the wings 35 and 36 'may rest upon the bathtub rim or sill and the entire space under the bottom wall 37 and between the wings may be filled with a caulking compound.

'It is apparent that the described lower guide track 17 embodying this invention provides, in effect, a water accumulating compartment below the roller carrying rails and having a bottom wall inclined towards drain openings or slots. Although a particular embodiment of the invention having the above characteristics has been described in detail herein and shown in the accompanying drawing, it is to be understood that'the invention is not limited to that particular embodiment, and that various changes and modifications may be effected in the latter without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention, except as indicated inthe appended claims.

.Whatis claimed is: h

1. In a shower enclosure an internal extruded lower guide track for the shower doorscomprising upstanding, spaced apart, parallel inner and outer side walls, said side walls having undulated surfaces, a bottom wall extending laterally between said side walls, flanges extending laterally toward each other from said' side walls as levels spaced upwardly from said bottom wall and having upturned free edges defining spaced, parallel rails, said flanges having openings therein to permit draining of water therethrough, and said inner side wall having openings therein at the level of the lowest portion, of the top surface of said bottom wall sothat any water splashing into the guide track betweensaid rails and between the latter and the adjacent side walls can drainfrom the track downwardly toward said inner side wall, flanges extending laterally toward each other from said side walls at levels spaced upwardly from said bottom wall, and spaced apart parallel rails supported by said flanges and raised by the latter from said bottom wallfor carrying supporting rollers on the doors, said inner side wall having spaced openings therein at the level of'the lowest portion of the top surface of the adjacent margin of the bottom wall so that any water splashing into said lower guide track is directed toward said inner side wall by said inclined bottom wall and drains from the track through said openings of the inner side wall. 

